Samosa Recipe

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Samosas

Well this is not really the full samosa recipe. Don't be alarmed but
what I will write here is just the pastry recipe and the method for
making samosas. The filling can be any number of things - you can make
meat samosa with almost any sort of meat curry or a vegetable samosa
with any vegetable dish.

Samosas are very old - there are samosa recipes dating back to the
10th century and the name probably derives from Persian.
There are variants all over Central Asia, the Middle East and into Northern
Africa. Within India they are generally reckoned to have originated
in the Gujerat, and early cornerstone of the Murghal Empire, but are
now pretty universal over the whole sub-continent.

They are generally eaten as snacks - maybe the equivalent of our pastie.
In the west they are also snacks but are often served as starters in
restaurants. They can be either deep fried of baked in an oven and each
culture has its own preferred shapes, sizes, fillings and cooking method.

Most samosa recipes go to the trouble of giving you a recipe for the
filling. I don't think I have ever made a filling specifically to make
samosas with; I always use surplus aloo bhaji or similar for vegetable
samosas, or leftover keema (on the rare occasions that there is any)
to make meat samosas. I do, however, often make too much of a side dish
quite intentionally with the idea of making samosas or stuffed
parathas later.

Unlike stuffed parathas, the filling for samosas can be quite a bit
more chunky so you can use the leftovers of almost any dish for your
samosa recipe.

Quantities. Most samosa recipes I have seen are quite
precise about everything but, as with other recipes like this, the number
of samosas you will make really depends on how big you make them and
how much filling you have. You can make (roughly) 1 pretty large samosa
per ounce (28g) of flour or maybe 3 small ones.

Flour. Indians use maida - all purpose white flour. Any good
strong white flour will do.

Salt. This is optional - some people have a big thing about to much
salt, and they do have a point; we generally do eat far too much of
it. I maybe use a little salt (¼ teaspoon or less in 8oz flour), you
can leave it out if you wish.

Ghee and oil. Most samosa recipes say oil, I personally prefer ghee.
For frying, any sort of frying oil is ok

Filling. As I say the filling can be quite chunky but if it is really
chunky then maybe chop or mash it a bit first.

Basic Method

Add salt to the flour if you wish and mix in
Add ghee or oil and rub this in so that it is well distributed and the
flour has a slight breadcrumb texture.
Add water to the flour a little at a time until you have a soft pliable
dough
Knead the dough for at least 5 minutes preferably 10
Leave to rest for about 20-30 mins
Divide the dough into balls - about the size of a golf ball or to suit
yourself
Start heating up your frying oil

For each ball of dough :-
Roll out into a nice round, very thin bit of dough,
probably aim for about 5-6ins diameter
Cut this round in half with a sharp knife - then with each half ...
Slightly wet the right hand half of the straight edge with water
Fold in half overlapping the straight edges to make a cone
Lightly press the edges together
Fill the cone with your filling
Slightly wet the inside of the top of the cone and fold this over
Repeat for each dough ball

Fry each samosa in hot oil until golden brown turning once

Making Samosas - yellow bits are where to wet slightly so it sticks
together

Notes on Method

Rubbing in oil is a bit of a messy affair, you really need to use your
hands to get a nice semi crumbly mixture.

If you read enough recipe books you will have undoubtedly come across
things like '..make a little well in the dough and pour in the water..'
I have never really figured the point of this, I just pour in some liquid
and mix with a spoon (a lot less sticky), pour in some more liquid if
required until it is of a consistency that I can start kneading it without
getting my fingers coated in goo.

Knead well! - most samosa recipes omit to stress the importance of
this. It is vital as you are going to be rolling out very thin and this
makes the dough springy and elastic. If you don't knead it enough the
final product fall to bits easily.

It is also good to let the dough rest for a while before rolling it
out. Some would suggest that you make the dough the day before, wrap
it in cling film and put in the fridge overnight - well if you like.
Make sure it is not drying out while it is resting.

When you have made your little balls of dough, you need to stop them
from drying out; covering them with a damp cloth is OK.

The dough needs to be really thin - almost transparent otherwise the
samosa will be doughy and too much like a pastie

Don't worry if you make too much dough, wrap what you don't use in
cling film and put in the fridge where it will keep for a couple of
days. You can always make little flat breads with it.

The oil should not be too hot or the the pastry will burn before it
is fully cooked or you will get a doughy, not cooked finish. To test
drop a small piece of dough in the oil; it should bubble but not rise
to the top immediately.

Options

In the pastry you can mix in a little whole seed; ajwain (carom seeds),
nigella or cumin seeds are good.

Some samosa recipes include a small amount of semolina flour (sooji)
- about 1 tablespoon in 4oz (125g) flour. This will give a slightly
crisper pastry when cooked.

If you want to bake your samosas then brush them with some oil or ghee
first and bake for about 15 minutes (give or take depending on how brown
you like them) at 200°C (400°F,Gas 6)

You can eat samosas as a snack say instead of sandwiches
or for a nice supper dish. Chutney
and pickle is good with them particularly
as a starter dish